Skull And Bones Playtest Raises Doubts About Game's Success

Skull and Bones, Ubisoft's highly anticipated pirate-themed video game, is raising doubt about its success. And this time, it isn't the result of another delay. Instead, it is due to negative feedback from playtesters. According to insider Tom Henderson on Twitter, the latest Skull and Bones live test does not install confidence in the necessary changes being made to make it a success. The worst part? The criticism even questions whether people will pay $70 for the game.

For the uninitiated, Skull and Bones is a standalone title set in an open world and was initially envisioned as an expansion of Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag. The game sees players take on the role of a pirate, featuring sea battles and a loot system, with players able to customize their ship and crew. While marketed as a compelling AAA title, the game has had it rough, having been delayed seven times -- the latest release date for Skull and Bones is slated for around March or April next year.

However, according to a tweet by Tom Henderson on 27 January 2023, it seems fans have even more reason to be disappointed. Several playtests have taken place to gather player feedback; however, the latest Skull and Bones playtest did not inspire much confidence. As noted by Henderson, it seems Ubisoft is fumbling their chance to make Skull and Bones a success. "I find it hard to believe that people are going to pay $70 for this one," Henderson said.

Unfortunately, Tom Henderson did not provide further detail regarding any specific upsets reported by the playtesters. Regardless, it's clear that previous high expectations for Skull and Bones have been muted by both playtesters and fans alike. This comes after several users on Twitter expressed their disappointment. One user wrote, "They should've canceled [Skull and Bones] 5 years ago, frankly, but here were are."

A different user claiming to have played an earlier live test said the game "feels like a worse version of Sea of Thieves." Finally, a third user said, "I don't think it's fixable. They need to scrap the game. Even after what was spent." While these criticisms clearly do not inspire confidence in Skull and Bones' success, it remains to be seen whether the developers will address these concerns and make the necessary changes in the future. That said, we will endeavor to update you regarding any further developments.